GILBERT: Give Obama his tax hike; then what?

All of the hysteria over the so-called fiscal cliff aside, people shouldn't forget about simple mathematics.

Let's grant President Obama his tax hike on the wealthy. That way we won't have to hear about it anymore, and he is correct: the people appear to agree with him.

The problem is, the tax as proposed would only raise $440 billion over the next 10 years, according to The Wall Street Journal. That would be barely noticeable in reducing our $1-trillion annual deficits and $16-trillion national debt.

And please don't lose sight of what the fiscal cliff is. If Congress takes no action, the Bush era tax cuts expire Jan. 1 (we actually once paid these taxes), a 2-percentage point cut in the Social Security tax will be restored and discretionary federal spending will be cut 10 percent, by $110 billion.

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To be sure, this would raise taxes about $2,000 annually on a typical middle-class family. Considering that we are currently borrowing 40 cents on every federal dollar this might seem like a nice downpayment rather than a disaster.

We are told the $55 billion in military cuts would jeopardize the nation's security. But Gordon Adams, a professor of international relations at the School of International Service at American University, is not so sure.

"It is not a pretty picture; no management expert would say this is the way to do defense (or any other) budgeting," Adams wrote in Foreign Policy. "But it is not doomsday. In fact, it might be discipline -- the kind of budgetary discipline the Pentagon has not had for the past decade. Good management, priority-setting and greater efficiency might be the result.

"And since the sequester would be a one-time event, setting a lower baseline for future defense growth, the nation might just be as safe as it ever was," Adams wrote.

Who among us doesn't think there is 10 percent of bloat throughout the federal government?

Chaired by Democrat Erskine Bowles and Republican Alan Simpson, the report's conclusion was easy to understand.

"Over the course of our deliberations, the urgency of our mission has become all the more apparent," the report stated. "The contagion of debt that began in Greece and continues to sweep through Europe shows us clearly that no economy will be immune. If the U.S. does not put its house in order, the reckoning will be sure and the devastation severe."

Oh, and by the way, there will be little warning. One day it will just happen.

The report is readily available online. Let's just look at one issue addressed -- Social Security -- and see what the report says.

To consider the administration and Congress's attitude toward the problem in the past 25 years, you would think the problem is insurmountable. But the commission devoted just seven pages to Social Security solutions, and they are easily comprehensible for any literate high school student.

"Over the next 75 years, the program faces a shortfall equal to 1.92 percent of taxable payroll," the report states. "Seventy-five years from now, that gap will increase to 4.12 percent of payroll.

"The commission proposes a balanced plan that eliminates the 75-year Social Security shortfall and puts the program on a sustainable path thereafter. To save Social Security for the long haul, all of us must do our part. The most fortunate will have to contribute the most, by taking lower benefits than scheduled and paying more in payroll taxes. Middle-income earners who are able to work will need to do so a little longer. At the same time, Social Security must do more to reduce poverty among the very poor and very old who need help the most."

Offer a minimum benefit of 125 percent of poverty level for an individual with 25 years of work and index minimum benefit level to wage growth.

Index normal retirement age and earliest eligibility age to longevity so that they grow about one month every two years. Also direct the Social Security Administration to create a hardship exemption.

Provide benefit enhancement equal to 5 percent of the average benefits -- spread out over five years -- for individuals who have been eligible for benefits for 20 years.

Gradually increase the taxable maximum to cover 90 percent of earnings by 2050.

Use the chained Consumer Price Index instead of the standard CPI to figure cost-of-living increases. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has stated that the chained CPI is designed to more closely approximate a cost-of-living index than the standard CPI, and experts on both sides of the aisle have supported this technical improvement to the index.

Cover newly hired state and local workers after 2020.

Add increased flexibility in retirement claiming options by allowing retirees to collect half of their benefits at a time, including by allowing them to collect the first half at age 62.

None of this is draconian. Our problems can be solved if our leaders will just work together.

Glenn Gilbert is executive editor of The Oakland Press. Contact him at glenn.gilbert@oakpress.com or 248-745-4587. Follow him on Twitter @glenngilbert2.